As computing devices and communications networks have continued to mature, the content available to users has increased in both variety and complexity. Media products, i.e. audio and/or video, can be obtained in a wide-variety of formats, including on physical storage devices, e.g. compact disc (CD) and digital versatile disc (DVD), as data files that can be stored locally on a computing device, and as streaming files that can be transferred to a computing device for playback during streaming. The media products can be presented by the computing system in the form of both visual and auditory information.
Increased bandwidth in communications networks has permitted ever increasing amounts of data to be transmitted. As a result, the on-line media playback experience continues to offer additional functionality and enhanced features, such as on-demand playback and random access within an item of media content. Further, increases in the accuracy and efficiency of media encoding techniques have resulted in improved media quality, reduced errors, and higher data transfer rates. Thus, media broadcasters have been able to improve the quality and amount of content they offer to media clients over communications networks, such as the internet.
Increases in bandwidth and media encoding also have enabled home users to effectively transmit audio and/or video to other users, either directly or through an intermediate service. For instance, an inexpensive web camera (or webcam) can be used to capture and transmit video or video/audio to one or more other users. Thus, a video chat session can be conducted between multiple users, including users of mobile computing devices.
Haptic feedback (or haptic output) has been used to a limited extent in user input devices, such as touch screens, keyboards, computer mice, and joysticks. Basic haptic feedback can be purely mechanical, such as a clicking sensation experienced when a mouse button is depressed with sufficient force. Other devices can be configured to output haptic feedback through the use of electro-mechanical means, such as by activating and/or deactivating one or more motors. For instance, a vibratory sensation can be imparted to an input device, e.g. a joystick, by turning an electric motor on and off.
Haptic feedback also has been incorporated in video gaming applications, such as by including a computer controlled actuator in a controller. For example, a control surface, e.g., a button or pad, can be located near an actuator. Further, the actuator can output a tactile sensation based on the occurrence of an event, such as in response to a command signal from a game console.